Experienced Zen meditators can clear their minds of distractions (being interrupted by a word-recognition task) more quickly than novices, according to a new brain imaging study by Emory University School of Medicine researchers.

“This suggests that the regular practice of meditation may enhance the capacity to limit the influence of distracting thoughts. This skill could be important in conditions such as attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorder and major depression, characterized by excessive rumination or an abnormal production of task-unrelated thoughts,” they said.